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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1..

J. PRATT. EXGELSIOR CUTTING MACHINE.

No. 463,200. Patented Nov. 17,1891.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. PRATT. EXGELSIOR CUTTING MACHINE.

No. 463,200. Patented Nov. 17,1891;

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIcE.

JOHN PRATT, OF OIIATIIAM, CANADA.

EXCELSlOR-CUTTING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 463,200, dated November17, 1891. Application filed November 3, 1890. Serial No. 370,198- (Nomodel.)

To ctZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN PRATT, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain,residing at Chatham, county of Kent, Province of Ontario, Canada, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Excelsior-CuttingMachines; and I declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

This invention has for its object to provide novel means for cuttingexcelsior; and it consists in the features of construction and com--bination or arrangement of devices hereinafter described and claimed,reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 isa side elevation of a machine embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a planview. Fig. 3 is an end elevation. Fig. 4 is an enlarged plan view of aportion. Fig. 5 is a side elevation of an enlarged portion. Fig. 6 is adetail of the knife. Fig. 7 is a detail showing the manner of hingingthe sections of the cutting-belt together.

In carrying out the invention, A represents the bed or frame of themachine. J ournaled at each end is a set of sprocket-wheels B B, the setB being on a. shaft 6, on which is located the band-wheel B by means ofwhich the machine-is driven.

C is what may be termed the cutting-belt. It is composed of sectionshinged together, as shown in Fig. 6. In each section is an orifice, inwhich the sprocket b on the sprocket-wheel enters. Thus the revolutionof the sprocketwheels B drives the cutting-belt. The sections of thebelt are provided with a splittingknife D and a cutting or shaving knifeE. The splittingknives are shaped, as shown in Fig. 7, withupward-projecting teeth (1.

F is the bed or guides'which support the cutting-belt while it issplitting and cutting the block.

G is a disk on the end of the shaft 1 oppo site the band-wheels B H isan upright shaft journaled adjacent to the shaft 19 and having afriction roller or wheel H, which bears on the face of the disk G, withthe result that when the disk is re volved the frictional contactbetween the disk G and roller 11 revolves the shaft H.

J is a shaft extending the length of the machine at its upper edge andprovided on its end with a gear J, which meshes with the worm-gear H onthe upper end of the shaft 11, the shaft J thus deriving its motion.

K K are the feed-rollers, there being two sets. The rollers K arejournaled at it in a fixed bearing, while the rollers K are journaled ina movable bearing, as hereinafter described. Each roller K is providedwith a pinion k, which meshes with a corresponding pinion m on a shaftM, journaled above the feed-roller in the movable bearing. N N are thebearings in which the said rollers are journaled, one at each side ofthe machine. On the end of the shaft M is a beveled gear M, which mesheswith a corresponding gear J on the shaft J. This gear is engaged to theshaft J by a feather-and-groove joint, so that it can slip freely alongthe shaft, but most revolve therewith. This gear J is engaged to themovable bearing N by the collar n. Journaled also in the movablebearings N N is the counter-shaft P, provided on its ends with thepinionsp. These pinions mesh in rack-bars Q Q on each side of themachine. The lever B is engaged to one end of the shaft P and isprovided with the weight R. Thus it will be seen that by throwing up thelever the pinions p, meshing in the rack-bars, will throw the roller Kaway from the roller K, thus widening the space between them. The blockto be cut up is placed on the traveling bed between the feed-rollers,the weight R serving to keep the block tightly clamped between therollers and the friction-disks G H and shafts H and J serving to revolvethe feed-rollers and feed the block as it is cut away from the underside by the traveling bed. Now, the traveling bed being started, thesplitting-knives D, provided with their upwardly-extending teeth orknives cl, pass along the under side of the block and cut into or creasethe same. Then the cutting or shaving knife E comes along and shaves offi the under surface of the block, the shavings dropping down into asuitable receptacle beneath and composing the excelsior. Now, as will beseen, by adjusting the knife to a higher-or lower position on the bedany desired thickness of cut may be made and the size of the excelsiorthus be graduated.

By the employment of the transverse shafts M and the pinions m 70 ofdifferent diameter (see Fig. 5) the feed-rollers K are rotated atconsiderably less speed than the speed of the shaft J, which is animportant feature in my machine for the proper feeding of the Worktoward the endless cutter-belt.

I have herein shown a cutting-knife and a splitting-knife upon eachsection of the traveling bed; but in practice I Would prefer to provideone section with a splittingknife and the next section with acutting-knife, so that every other section has a splitting-knife andevery other section a cutting-knife, although it is obvious that thenumber of splittingknives and cutting-knives may be increased ordiminished at Will.

The advantages of this style of machine are numerous. In the first placethe sections of the bed are interchangeable. In the next place thethickness of the cut may be varied and great speed can be obtained incutting, since the bed is continuously in motion and continuously inoperation. Then, also, two or more blocks may be placed in the machineat once, depending on the length of the machine, although of course, ifdesired, a small machine might be made With capacity for only one blockat a time.

What I claim is- 1. The combination, in a machine for cutting excelsior,of a frame A, supporting Wheels 13 B, an endless traveling belt 0,provided with attached splitting and cutting knives D and E, a pair offeed-rollers K K, acting to advance the material toward the surface ofthe belt and each provided with a pinion k, one of said rollers beingmounted in bearings which are movable toward and from the otherfeed-roller, a single rotating drive-shaft having a series of bevelgear-wheels, a series of transverse shafts M, geared to the drive-shaftand provided with pinions m, engaging the pinions on the feed-rollers,and rack and pinion mechanism for reciprocating the movable bearings,substantially as described.

2. The combination, in a machine for cutting excelsior, of aframe A,supporting Wheels B B, a traveling belt 0, provided with attachedsplitting and cutting knives D and E, a pair of rotating feed-rollers KK, provided with pinions k and serving to advance the material towardthe surface of the belt, one of said feed-rollers being journaled inbearings Which are movable'toward andfrom the other feed-roller, asingle rotating drive-shaft J provided with bevel gear-Wheels, a seriesof transverse shafts geared to the drive-shaft and provided with pinionsm, engaging the pinions on the feed-rollers, the racks Q, secured to theframe, the transverse shafts P, journaled inthe movable bearings andhaving pinions p engaging the racks, and means ,for turning thepinion-carrying shafts to reciprocate the movable bearings,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification in the presence of twoWitnesses.

JOHN PRATT.

Witnesses:

MARION A. REEVE, W. H. CHAMBERLIN.

